Barcelona, A Modern City With Deep Local Roots

Barcelona is an incredibly popular European city for travelers of all ages and interests, young explorers in particular seem enthralled by the cities diversity, indeed no city in Europe mixes cosmopolitan style with regional flair quite like Barcelona. The city’s well-kept public spaces and diverse population give it a modern, international feel.

At the same time, the strong influence of the region’s nationalist movement keeps the local culture a vibrant focal point for the city’s many sights and activities.

Situated in northern Spain Barcelona is well extremely accessible by rail, car and air and attracts travelers from all across Europe and beyond.

Barcelona is a City For Everyone

Barcelona’s variety of sights offer something for everyone. La Barceloneta is an award-winning white sand beach on the balmy Mediterranean Sea. The surrounding streets are packed with restaurants, bars, and nightclubs, many with breath-taking views of the shoreline.

Barcelona Offers Travelers a Unique Diverse City to Explore

History buffs and architecture aficionados on the other hand can visit the Barri Gòtic, the Gothic Quarter. Narrow, winding streets open into plazas surrounded by quaint buildings, many of which date back to the Middle Ages.

Some are even as old as the Roman settlement of Barcelona; in fact, there are remnants of the wall the Romans built around the city sometime in the early first century. For history that is a little less remote, Montjuïc hill is home to the Castell de Montjuïc.

Although the fortress was built in the 17th century, some of its most important history only dates as far back as the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s, when both sides used the fortress to imprison and execute political opponents.

Despite this gruesome history, the hill and fortress offer an impressive vista of the Mediterranean on one side and a clear panorama of the entire city on the other.

Filled with sculptures and fountains showcasing the city’s artistic flair and surrounded by restaurants, theaters, shops, hotels, and banks, la Plaça de Catalunya is a bustling plaza which acts as the heart of the city.

The Commercial Side of Barcelona

One end of the plaza opens into Las Ramblas, a wide street with a pedestrian shopping mall at its center, full of colorful street vendors selling everything from mass-produced plastic souvenirs to authentic, handmade crafts from local craftsmen.

Las Ramblas in Barcelona

Las Ramblas district runs from the central Plaça de Catalunya straight to Port Vell, a family-friendly harbor with many attractions bars and restaurants is also in the vicinity.

Before being renovated prior to the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Las Ramblas was a run-down and deserted area of Barcelona; now it is a major tourist destination which features a mall, an IMAX theater, and the largest aquarium in Europe, this area of Barcelona is now a major tourist attraction for travelers.

Art and Culture

No discussion of Barcelona would be complete without mention of the celebrated Antoni Gaudí, without a doubt the city’s most celebrated architect.

Dozens of Gaudí structures can be found throughout the city, and indeed his characteristic style of “modernisme” or “Art Nouveau” can even now be seen in every corner of Barcelona’s buildings and public spaces almost 100 years after his death.

La Sagrada Familia in Barcelona - Construction Work is Still Ongoing

Among the most famous of his buildings are Casa Batlló, with its dazzling bright mosaic façade, Casa Milà, known for its unique chimney and roof architecture, and of course, La Sagrada Familia.

Construction on this magnificent cathedral began in 1882, and isn’t expected to be completed before 2026. In many ways resembling a large sand castle, the completed building will have 18 tapered spires topped with sunburst-like shapes and be the tallest church in the world.

Murals consisting of sculptures etched into the facades of the building portray various scenes from the life of Christ, and Gaudí’s characteristic colors and curves are incorporated into the windows and stonework.

Gaudí has received worldwide renown, with seven of his works designated as World Heritage sites by UNESCO.

Gaudí buildings are easy to spot, with their iconic wavy lines, bright colors, and whimsical shapes. His influence can be seen throughout the city in buildings by other architects which attempt to imitate these features in small ways.

This gives the entire city a coherent architectural look, right down to the lamp posts (also designed by Gaudi) and benches. Barcelona’s streets are wide, clean, and arranged in a well-planned grid that facilitates traffic flow.

Benches line main pedestrian thoroughfares, nearly always in the shade of evenly-spaced trees. It is no wonder that people from all around the world consider Barcelona a comfortable, modern home, or that it has received international awards for its architecture and design.

Barcelona – A City With Local Identity

But despite this cosmopolitan atmosphere, Barcelona retains a local identity stronger than that of most European cities. Spain is a country of extraordinary cultural diversity, with four nationally recognized languages and 17 autonomous communities; several of these communities are legally recognized nationalities.

Catalonia in northern Spain has fiercely independent pride

Catalonia (of which Barcelona is a part) is one such community, so its residents consider themselves “Catalan” rather than “Spanish.” This part of northern Spain has had its share of armed confrontation over the years, much of the regional volatility instigated by Catalonia separatists.

During the dictatorship of Francisco Franco from 1936 to 1975, the expression of such nationalistic pride was brutally repressed.

As a result, Catalan cultural identity is now celebrated with an even more fervent zeal. Although Spanish is spoken widely in Barcelona, tourists who attempt to speak Catalan will be greeted warmly by residents.

Signs throughout the city are posted in Catalan with occasional Spanish translations, regional dishes supplant national ones on local menus, and books published and songs sung in Catalan are prized over their Spanish versions.

Local outposts of national chain stores even translate their names into Catalan.

This mixture of global and local makes the city as unique as it is vibrant. While travelers from all corners of the world enjoy visiting this diverse modern city, Barcelona can feel sure that it will not lose its local history or Catalan character anytime soon.

Barcelona – The Globetrooper View

Barcelona is a mystical, diverse and cultural bonanza for the modern day traveler; a city that caters for every taste and every conceivable whim or interest. Barcelona’s accessibility from within Europe by rail and air and its real diversity makes the city a perfect destination for both traveling alone and in groups.

Indulge in appreciating the rich local culture or spend time on the beaches or browsing shopping malls, no visit to northern Spain should pass by without a trip to Barcelona.

Thinking of going? Why not create a trip to Barcelona using the Globetrooper trip wizard or search for existing trips to join, its fun and free to use.

10 Responses to Barcelona, A Modern City With Deep Local Roots

Hi Chris,
I’m from Barcelona, and working in the travel industry in Canada. I very much like your article, and I actually appreciate your contribution to the “local identity”, since that’s something people don’t know about, and we’re very proud of.
Either way… the map… where did you get that from? Where is it from? It kind of looks like a reversed and altered version of Catalonia, but it’s certainly not… You might not want to change it, but in my opinion it’s just wrong!!

Thanks for your constructive feedback and yes we thought talking about the unique aspects of Barcelona, the local identity etc was a useful angle to adopt in the feature so pleased that you like it.

With the map perhaps we could find a different style, a map with more detail also to increase reader awareness of the area. If you have any suggestions for future features on Globetrooper do let us know!